Augšdaugava Municipality (, "upper

Daugava The Daugava ( ), also known as the Western Dvina or the Väina River, is a large river rising in the Valdai Hills of Russia that flows through Belarus and Latvia into the Gulf of Riga of the Baltic Sea. The Daugava rises close to the source of ...

municipality") is one of the 35

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

established in

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

in 2021. It surrounds the independent city of

Daugavpils Daugavpils (see also other names) is a state city in southeastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city derives its name. The parts of the city to the north of the river belong to the historical Latvian region ...

and its municipal headquarters are located there. Its first elected municipal council has taken office on 1 July 2021.

Geography

Augšdaugava Municipality covers an area of . It is located in the southwestern part of the

Latgale Latgale (; ; ; ; ; ; Belarusian Latin alphabet, Belarusian Latin: ''Łathalija''; ), also known as Latgalia or Latgallia, is one of the Historical Latvian Lands. It is the easternmost region of the country and lies north of the Daugava River. Wh ...

region in eastern Latvia, and surrounds the city of Daugavpils on all sides. It borders

Jēkabpils Municipality Jēkabpils Municipality () is a municipality in Latvia. The municipality was formed in 2009 by Merger (politics), merging Ābeļi Parish, Dignāja Parish, Dunava Parish, Kalna Parish, Leimaņi Parish, Rubene Parish and Zasa Parish. During the Adm ...

to the northwest,

Līvāni Municipality Līvāni Municipality (, ) is a municipality in Latgale, Latvia. The municipality was formed in 1999 by merging Rožupe Parish, Turki Parish and Līvāni town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but sma ...

to the north,

Preiļi Municipality Preiļi Municipality () is a municipality in Latgale, Latvia. The municipality was formed in 2000 by merging Aizkalne Parish, Preiļi Parish and Preiļi town. In 2009 it absorbed Pelēči Parish and Sauna Parish, too the administrative centre ...

to the northeast, and

Krāslava Municipality Krāslava Municipality (, ) is a municipality in Latgale, Latvia. The municipality was formed in 2001 by Merger (politics), merging Krāslava Parish and Krāslava town. In 2009 it absorbed Auleja Parish, Indra Parish, Izvalta Parish, Kalnieši Par ...

to the east. It also borders the

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

counties A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

Panevėžys Panevėžys () is the fifth-largest List of cities in Lithuania, city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, eighth-most-populous city in the Baltic States. it occupies with 89,100 inhabitants. As defined by Eu ...

and

Utena Utena () is a city in north-east Lithuania. It is the administrative center of Utena district and Utena County. Utena is one of the oldest settlements of Lithuania. The name of the city is most probably derived from a hydronym. The name of the ...

to the west and southwest respectively, and Vitebsk Region in

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

to the southeast. The southernmost point of Latvia is located on the border with Lithuania in

Demene Parish Demene Parish () is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, ...

, and is commemorated with a nearby sculpture by . The Augšzeme ("highland") region is located in the south-central part of the municipality and is a

Protected Landscape IUCN protected area categories, or IUCN protected area management categories, are categories used to classify protected areas in a system developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The enlisting of such areas is part ...

with an area of . and are found within the protected area. Also located in the area is , the highest point of the municipality with an elevation of above sea level. It is the site of a ski resort. The

flows into the municipality from the east and turns north at Daugavpils. The Daugava valley east of Daugavpils is a Protected Landscape Area which extends into Krāslava Municipality. A third Protected Landscape Area located in the northern part of the municipality is Nīcgale forest in Nīcgale Parish. The is located on its eastern boundary and is the largest

glacial erratic A glacial erratic is a glacially deposited rock (geology), rock differing from the type of country rock (geology), rock native to the area in which it rests. Erratics, which take their name from the Latin word ' ("to wander"), are carried by gla ...

known in Latvia with a volume of approximately .

History

Augšdaugava Municipality corresponds in extent to the former Daugavpils district as it existed from 1967 to 2009. In the 2009 territorial reforms, Daugavpils district was divided into the municipalities of

and

Ilūkste Ilūkste (; ; ) is a town in Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. The population in 2020 was 2,216. History The territory of modern Ilūkste was inhabited by the Selonians, an ancient Baltic peoples, Baltic tribe. As a set ...

. In 2020, the

Saeima The Saeima () is the parliament of the Latvia, Republic of Latvia. It is a unicameral parliament consisting of 100 members who are elected by proportional representation, with seats allocated to political parties which gain at least 5% of the p ...

approved reducing the number of administrative divisions at the municipal level from 119 to 42, including rejoining the municipalities of Daugavpils and Ilūkste to form Augšdaugava Municipality. Elections for Latvia's new municipal councils were held on 5 June 2021, and the new municipalities including Augšdaugava went into effect on 1 July 2021.

Administration

Augšdaugava Municipality elected 15 councillors in the 2021 local elections. The municipality is to form joint authorities with the city of Daugavpils for the administration of civil protection, education, and waste management. The municipality is subdivided into two towns and 25 parishes: ;Towns *

* Subate ;Parishes * Ambeļi Parish *

Bebrene Parish Bebrene Parish is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, ...

* Biķernieki Parish *

* Dubna Parish *

Dviete Parish Dviete Parish () is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, ...

Eglaine Parish Eglaine Parish () is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. Villages * Annasmuiža * Baltmuiža * Eglaine * Laši * Vitkuški See also * Gotthard Friedrich Stender Gotthard Friedrich Stender ( ...

Kalkūne Parish Kalkūne Parish () is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic state ...

* Kalupe Parish * Laucesa Parish *

Līksna Parish Līksna Parish (, ) is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Latgale region of Latvia. Before the Latvian administrative reform of 2021, it had been a part of Daugavpils Municipality, Daugavpils district, Daugavpils apri ...

* Maļinova Parish * Medumi Parish *

Naujene Parish Naujene Parish () is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Latgale region of Latvia. Towns, villages and settlements of Naujene Parish * Lociki * Slutiški Slutiški is a village in Naujene Parish, Augšdaugava Munici ...

* Nīcgale Parish * Pilskalne Parish * Prode Parish * Saliena Parish * Šēdere Parish * Skrudaliena Parish * Svente Parish * Tabore Parish * Vabole Parish * Vecsaliena Parish * Višķi Parish

Demographics

The Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia estimated a population of 25,927 living in what is now Augšdaugava Municipality at the beginning of 2021. This represented a 39% decrease from its estimated population of 42,483 at the beginning of 2000, and a 22% decrease from its estimated population of 33,222 at the beginning of 2011. The populations of the towns of Ilūkste and Subate were estimated to be 2169 and 596 respectively at the beginning of 2021.

Economy and infrastructure

Augšdaugava is primarily an agricultural municipality: in 2005, 71% of the total area of the former Daugavpils district was used for agricultural purposes, mainly cereal and cattle farming. The municipality is served by national roads A6, which connects Daugavpils to

Jēkabpils Jēkabpils () is a state city in Jēkabpils Municipality in southeastern Latvia, located roughly halfway between the capital Riga and Daugavpils, and spanning the Daugava River. The name of the city literally translates into "Castle of Jacob". H ...

and

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

to the northwest, and

Krāslava Krāslava (; , , , , ) is a town and the administrative centre of Krāslava Municipality. The town lies on the Daugava, upstream and to the east of the city of Daugavpils. Most of the town is situated on the right coast of the Daugava. As defined ...

and the Belarusian border to the east; A13, which runs from the Lithuanian border southwest of Daugavpils through Daugavpils and

Rēzekne Rēzekne (, ''Rēzne'' or ''Rēzekne'' , ) is a state city in the Rēzekne River valley in the Latgale region of eastern Latvia. It is called ''The Heart of Latgale'' (Latvian ''Latgales sirds'', Latgalian ''Latgolys sirds''). Built on seven ...

and the Russian border northeast of Kārsava; and A14, a western bypass of Daugavpils. The Riga–Daugavpils gas pipeline and the defunct

Unecha Unecha (), a town and the administrative center of Unechsky District in Bryansk Oblast, Russia, stands on the Unecha River (within the Dnieper's drainage basin, basin) southwest of Bryansk, the administrative center of the oblast. Population: ...

–

Polotsk Polotsk () or Polatsk () is a town in Vitebsk Region, Belarus. It is situated on the Dvina River and serves as the administrative center of Polotsk District. Polotsk is served by Polotsk Airport and Borovitsy air base. As of 2025, it has a pop ...

–

Ventspils Ventspils () is a state city in northwestern Latvia in the historical Courland region of Latvia, and is the sixth largest city in the country. At the beginning of 2020, Ventspils had a population of 33,906. It is situated on the Venta River and ...

branch of the Druzhba oil pipeline also run through the municipality. Daugavpils International Airport is located at Lociki in Augšdaugava Municipality northeast of Daugavpils.

References

{{Latgale Region Municipalities of Latvia 2021 establishments in Latvia States and territories established in 2021